“What do you say we break for lunch and see how much we can get done this afternoon?” Garrett asked, wiping his brow with his shirtsleeve.
“You’ll get no argument from me.” Even with my morning latte and apple strudel, I had worked up an appetite. “I can go grab us sausages from the Wursthouse.”
“And I can pour us some pints.” Garrett smiled.
Kat continued to use her putty knife on the wallpaper. “I’ll keep working until you get back. I love the feeling when you can tell that you’re close to pulling off a huge piece.”
“Any sausage requests?” I asked them.
“No, but I’ll take like two of anything you want to bring us.” Garrett rubbed his stomach. “I’m starving.”
“Be back in a flash.” I stopped at the bathroom to splash some cold water on my face and then headed for the Wursthouse. It was a popular spot with locals and a tourist favorite. The outdoor grill had a walk-up counter where you could order sausages to go. Inside there was a dining room and a covered outdoor deck for any customers who wanted to linger over a brat and beer.
The choices and smells at the Wursthouse made my stomach growl so loud I thought it might disturb the customers waiting in line in front of me. I studied the choices, including charbroiled Bavarian-style sausages, bratwurst, chicken and apple sausages, curry wurst, and kelbassi. Since both Garrett and Kat had said that they were famished, I decided to order an assortment of everything along with sauerkraut, cold German potato salad, and kettle chips. It only took a couple of minutes for the Wursthouse staff to box up my order. I was about to return to Nitro, loaded with a huge box of spicy sausages, when April snuck up behind me. She was in the same incognito outfit I’d seen her in yesterday.
“Sloan, I’ve been looking everywhere for you. Have you been avoiding me?” She peered at me from beneath her oversized black sunglasses.
“What are you talking about? I’ve been at Nitro all morning. If you were looking everywhere for me, you should have come by.”
“I did. I knocked five times. No one answered. I even went around the back. I swear I heard music and talking. You’re trying to ditch me, aren’t you?” Her eyes bugged out.
“If I was trying to ditch you, April, you wouldn’t be talking to me now, would you?”
She raised her hands in surrender. “Listen, Sloan, we don’t have time to play around with semantics. We have a much more pressing issue that needs our attention immediately.”
I shifted the heavy box. “As you can see, I have my hands full at the moment.”
“Sloan, I learned something monumental this morning. Huge. Massive.”
“Okay, tell me, what is it?”
She glanced around us. “Not here. Come with me.”
I protested. “I just ordered lunch. These sausages are steaming.”
“It will only take a minute for me to fill you in, then you can go drop off lunch at Nitro.” She yanked me across the street. When we were out of earshot of the people congregated at the grill for lunch, she leaned in close and whispered, “I heard a very interesting rumor this morning about Kris, and I desperately need your help to investigate.”
“Go on.” I realized that in every interaction I’d had with April the past few days that she had not once uttered a single German phrase nor made any attempt at a thick, fake accent. It was a refreshing break from her nauseating need to constantly be Leavenworth’s expert on all things Bavarian. It also made me consider that she might be innocent. If April had abandoned her dirndls and braids, and spoke in complete sentences without slipping in a guten Morgen or schӧnen Tag noch (have a nice day), she was in bad shape.
“It turns out that he invested a large chunk of cash in a local business. A business that would be directly impacted if his plan to make Leavenworth dry came to fruition.”
“Okay. Why are you telling me?”
“Because I need your help sleuthing out whether or not it’s true.”
“Why don’t you do that yourself? Or, better idea. Go to Chief Meyers.”
“I already did. The person who I think Kris was involved in a secret deal with isn’t exactly a close friend of mine. Let’s just say that we haven’t been on good terms for a while.”
Not a shocker. April had managed to irritate nearly every business owner in Leavenworth over the years.
“Chief Meyers gave me the usual canned response about ‘looking into it,’ but that’s not enough, Sloan. My reputation is at stake. The village is swarming with press. I can’t risk letting anyone think that I’m a suspect in Kris’s murder a second longer.” She glanced around.
“What am I supposed to do?”
“Go talk to this person. See what you can find out. Everyone trusts you, Sloan. Why, I still haven’t a clue, but I know she’ll talk to you.”
“Who?”
“Heidi.”
I almost dropped the box of sausages. “Heidi?”
April nodded frantically. “Yes, yes. I have heard from a very credible source that Kris invested in the Hamburg last year. Do you remember the major remodel the hotel did?”
I nodded.
“Apparently, that was thanks in large part to Kris’s wallet. Heidi went out in search of venture capital to update the hotel, which was a wise move. I had kindly offered her a number of suggestions on how to bring the Hamburg in line with our village aesthetic. I pointed out to her on many occasions that it was turning into an unsightly eyesore.”
I’m sure you did, I thought to myself.
“She didn’t get any bites, probably because it was in such bad shape, but then Kris swept in and offered to be a silent partner.”
“That doesn’t make any sense. You told this to Chief Meyers?”
“Yes, we’ve already been over that. The chief is looking into it, but I want intel—now. Heidi and I had a falling-out earlier this year when I simply suggested that she might attract more guests and a husband if she cut down on her apple strudel habit. For some reason, she took that as an insult.” April looked flabbergasted. “I would talk to her myself, but she’s given me the cold—rather icy—shoulder ever since. My advice to lay off the German pastries paid off, because she’s recently dropped quite a bit of her pudge. She should be thrilled with my input, but some people are so sensitive to constructive feedback.”
I didn’t comment on that. “Who did you hear this from?”
April folded her arms across her chest. “I’m not at liberty to say, but as I mentioned, my source is reputable. An upstanding member of the Leavenworth business community with a serious commitment to preserving our German heritage.” She shot me a knowing look.
“Why don’t they tell Chief Meyers this?”
“It’s complicated. Heidi swore this person to secrecy, and they don’t want to break that trust.”
“But this is a murder investigation.”
“I know. Which is exactly why I need your help. Promise me that you’ll talk to Heidi. See what you can get out of her. Maybe there’s evidence. A contract, something.”
“Are you asking me to snoop around her office?”
“I didn’t say that. I simply said maybe there’s evidence lying around, and if there is, what harm would there be in delivering that evidence to the police?”
“April, I am most definitely not going to snoop around Heidi’s office.”
“Fine, but you’ll talk to her, won’t you? Please, Sloan. I can’t stand being treated like a common criminal. You should see the looks that I’m getting when I’m out in the village. Especially from the press. I’m sure they’re working on an exposé about me as we speak.”
I suspected that the reason April was receiving strange looks from the press had to do with her outlandish outfit. If she was trying to look inconspicuous the trench coat and black attire had the opposite effect.
“What exactly are you asking me to do?” I repeated. My arms were beginning to quiver under the weight of the box.
“Just go talk to Heidi. She likes you. See if
she’ll confess that Kris was a silent partner. According to my source, they had a huge fight. Heidi was livid that he had taken such a shift in policy. She tried to reason with him about what a ban on alcohol would do to the village and to his investment in the Hamburg, but he didn’t care. He was set on his mission. I know she killed him. She did it, Sloan. Think about it. They say that money is a huge motivator for murder.”
I wasn’t sure what to think. Given my conversation with Heidi earlier this morning, I was leaning toward believing what April was telling me.
“I’ll see what I can do.”
“Thank you. Thank you, Sloan. You are a true friend and a saint. Call me the second you finish your conversation with her. Then we can go to Chief Meyers together. She’ll believe it if it’s coming from you and if you can get Heidi to confess.”
“I’ll call you later.” With that, I turned and made a beeline for Nitro before April could say anything more.
This was really a matter for Chief Meyers. I was sure the chief was likely pulling Heidi’s and the Hamburg’s financial records and looking into April’s theory. However, I hated to admit it, but I was feeling more and more convinced that Heidi might be a killer.
CHAPTER
TWENTY-THREE
“WOW, THAT WAS FAST,” GARRETT commented when I returned with lunch.
“It would have been even faster, had I not had the good fortune to bump into April Ablin.”
He let out a low whistle. “Oh, sorry.”
I set the box from the Wursthouse on one of the high-top tables and walked behind the bar to grab napkins and plates. “Can I use you as a sounding board?”
“Hit me.” Garrett poured us beers. “Actually, I’m glad you asked because it seems like you’ve kind of been in your head this morning. I was going to ask you if everything was okay.”
“It’s the murder investigation. I can’t get it out of my head.” That was half true. I told him about my one-sided conversation with April. Then I filled him in on my talk with Heidi and what I had learned about Ross.
“You’ve been busy, Sloan. How have you managed to find this all out while still working? Are you running a secret detective agency in the back alley?”
“It feels like it.” I unloaded the sausages and sides. “What do you think I should do?”
“First, you should definitely fill in Chief Meyers, but April might be on to something about having you reach out to Heidi again. One thing I’ve learned since moving to Leavenworth is that people in a small town talk to their neighbors in a way that never happened in Seattle.” He paused and brought over the first beer. “You know, I think in all of the years that I lived in my condo, I maybe spoke to my neighbors twice. Can you imagine that here?”
“It sounds dreamy.”
“Maybe. There’s something to be said for connection, though.”
“That’s why I’m wondering if I should leave this to the chief.”
He poured another pint. “You definitely need to share this with her, but I think April’s right about Heidi potentially confiding in you versus an authority figure.”
“Don’t say that to Alex. He is under the impression that I am the authority figure.”
Garrett laughed. “You are. Trust me. That’s why I think there’s a possibility Heidi will spill whatever she’s hiding—or not—to you. You don’t do drama, Sloan. Everyone around here knows and appreciates that. You aren’t prone to hysterics or one to spread gossip. People understand that they can come to you in confidence.”
“Thanks.” I was touched by his words, but unsure about how to proceed. If only he knew the range of emotions swirling inside me.
Kat came downstairs drenched in sweat and wearing a big grin. “I got that last section done. Only one room to go.”
“Cheers to that.” Garrett set another pint glass on the table. “Can I pour you a beer?”
“No thanks.” Kat pulled up a barstool. “I don’t know how you guys can drink a pint at lunch and go back to work no problem.”
“It’s brewer’s code,” Garrett said.
“Yeah, and years of required drinking on the job,” I agreed.
We dove into the sausages. I was glad I had opted to go with an assortment and ordered extra sides, because a half hour later, there wasn’t a crumb left on the table.
“All right, how do we want to divide up the afternoon?” Garrett asked, tossing his napkin in the garbage.
“If you don’t mind, I’m kind of into this project,” Kat said. “I’d like to see it through, but if you want me to open the tasting room, that’s totally cool too.”
“You won’t get any argument from me,” I said with a wink.
“I’ll come help you with the rest of the heavy lifting,” Garrett said to Kat and then turned to me. “As long as you don’t mind being on bar duty this afternoon?”
“Mind? Never.”
They went upstairs. I cleared our lunch dishes, readied the tasting room, propped the chalkboard sign on the sidewalk, and opened the front door. The early November sun filtered through the windows.
It was a slow start. Only a few customers trickled in for the first two hours. Normally I wouldn’t have minded, but without being busy, thoughts of my conversation with Ursula kept intruding. I focused on organizing the bar, not that it needed it, but I had to give my hands something to do.
Conrad, the owner of Leavenworth’s second nutcracker shop, came in around three. He walked up to the bar with purpose. “I need a beer, the hardest beer you have.”
“Hardest?” Beer wasn’t categorized in the same way as hard alcohol. There were beers that had a higher ABV content. A double IPA or even a triple IPA might have 10 percent alcohol versus a light session ale that might only contain 4 percent.
“Whatever is the strongest. It’s been a rough day.”
“We don’t have anything with a high ABV on tap at the moment.”
“Fine. Then give me a pint of the Pucker Up.”
I poured Conrad his pint. “Is there anything I can help with?”
He chugged the beer. “No. I don’t think so; it’s just been a bad day. I’m sure a few pints of this will take off the edge.”
I wanted to caution him that chugging our hop-forward IPA was likely going to make him feel worse. Our craft beers were meant for sipping.
Conrad tapped his fingers on the rim of the pint glass. “Have you heard anything more about Kristopher’s murder?”
“Not really.” I wasn’t going to share what I knew with Conrad, especially in his semi-erratic state.
“Me neither.” He took two huge swigs of the beer. “Although I did hear a rumor that it had something to do with money.”
“You did?” I kept my face passive.
He barely made eye contact. “Did you know that he was investing in a bunch of Leavenworth businesses on the side? He kept it on the down-low, because can you say ‘conflict of interest’? He was an elected official. He couldn’t go around secretly dumping money into local businesses without disclosing that publicly. That’s unethical and against city council bylaws.”
“Who told you this?”
Conrad shook his head. “I don’t know. It’s all over town.”
Was April floating the rumor, or was there real merit to it?
“Do you know what businesses he had invested in?”
Conrad finished his pint and handed me his empty glass. “Can I get another?”
I turned to pour him a fresh pint. When I handed it back to him, I couldn’t resist a word of caution. “Be careful. Our IPAs have a tendency to sneak up on you.”
“I can handle it.” He took a huge drink to prove his point.
Maybe he could, but if he guzzled this second pint in the same time he had polished off the first, I could refuse to serve him.
“Did you happen to hear what businesses he was financially involved with?” I asked again.
“No. It’s all rumor and speculation, I guess. It sounds like he had interest in more than o
ne business in town. Someone told me in dozens.”
“That doesn’t make any sense,” I said under my breath.
“What?”
“Nothing.” I picked up a towel. “I need to go wipe down a couple tables.” I left him with his pint and went to clear a table that had been vacated. Why would Kristopher have invested in Leavenworth businesses only to then propose legislation to prohibit alcohol? The two seemed to be in conflict with each other. Every business in the village (regardless if they sold or distributed alcohol) would be impacted by such a drastic change. What was Kristopher’s endgame? It didn’t add up.
I cleared the table and wiped it down. When I returned to the bar, Conrad had chugged the rest of his second pint. He slapped a twenty-dollar bill on the bar. “I need to get back to the store. Thanks for the drink.”
At least he had cut himself off. I watched him power-walk toward the door. Why was he so upset about Kristopher investing in local businesses? Not that I blamed him. He was right about it being a conflict of interest, and if that information had gotten out before the election, that likely would have sealed the deal for his imminent loss.
I couldn’t figure out why Kristopher would have put money into businesses only to jeopardize their livelihoods. I had to be missing something. If what Conrad had told me was true, it was looking much more plausible that Heidi could be the killer.
Could she have killed Kristopher to save the Hamburg? I tried to reason through what might have happened to come up with some kind of a theory—even if it was far-fetched. If I assumed that Kristopher had secretly invested in the hotel as a silent partner and then Heidi learned of his intention to make Leavenworth dry, that gave her two potential motives. Kristopher’s death would ensure that tourists kept pouring into town, and it also silenced his voice in her business decisions. I wondered what the terms of her contract with him had been.
There was another possibility. It was outlandish, but I couldn’t dismiss it. What if Kristopher had a bigger plan and Heidi figured it out? What his plan could have been, I had no idea, but if he was scheming to ruin Leavenworth as we knew it and Heidi realized it, she could have decided to kill him.
Beyond a Reasonable Stout Page 17